Marry to Love
by Xinlatus
Summary: You are not my first love. You are my first heartbreak. [Sequel to Marry to Money]
1. Broken

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto/Shippuden. Only the plot/storylines and the OCs.**

* * *

 **Ch1: Broken**

 **:::::**

The night could not contain Sakura's sleep that she abruptly opened her eyes. It was dark and she faced the wall. The expected good night sleep had betrayed her- just like he did. Instantly, her nose scrunched up and she curled to herself. Her hands grasp tightly and she cried again- against her will.

 **/Flashback**

 _It had been more than an hour and there was still no sign of Sasuke. A soft sigh left Sakura's lips as she looked outside; the rain had stopped awhile ago. Impulsively, she reached for the glass and was about to sip on her lemon tea before abruptly stop. Even the drink that she had was almost finished. She stopped herself from finishing it as she thought of waiting for some more minutes._

 _And finally Sasuke came. Sakura's heart was beating fast all of a sudden- from excitement, from anger. Her cheeks felt warm out of nothing and unconsciously, she was crossing her arms. The raven haired guy went straight up to her and sat across of her._

 _"_ _Sorry, I'm late…" said Sasuke simply._

 _Sakura pouted slightly at his dull confession and right at that moment, a waitress came and asked Sasuke for his order._

 _"_ _No, thanks. This won't be long…" Sasuke replied and the waitress walked away._

 _However, Sakura was startled by that, she blinked curiously at her boyfriend. And she was opening her mouth, about to say something when Sasuke cut her off._

 _"_ _I wanna tell you something, Sakura…" said Sasuke as he stared at her intently._

 _The pinkette stayed silent and pursed her lips. She was intimidated by the way Sasuke stared at her- and the fact that he did not even smile at all since he came. Sakura observed the details he had on his face, and knew that Sasuke was dead serious about something._

 _"_ _Yes?" Sakura managed to utter in almost a whisper._

 _"_ _We're breaking up" said Sasuke in a breath._

 _And it was taking Sakura's breathe away. She snorted, thinking that she heard it wrong. "This is a joke, right?" she said. A cynical smile crept on her face as she knew how much Sasuke loves to tease her._

 _But it was not even funny, that Sasuke kept his deadpan face. "No… this is not a joke" he breathed it out and his eyes darted elsewhere._

 _The smile on Sakura's face was slowly wiped away. She had mixed of feelings in her chest. "What if this isn't—"._

 _"_ _This is a joke, right?" Sakura repeated herself; "—I want you to confess, right now because I won't believe you, Sasuke-kun!"_

 _Sasuke closed his eyes for seconds before he opened them again to stare at Sakura. "But this is not a joke. And it's enough for us- for 100 days together" he said firmly._

 _Sakura's lips quivered and she frowned deeply. Her lips were sealed although she had a lot of things to spout. And Sasuke stood up. "I'm leaving now…" he said and turned away._

 _The pinkette's head was hazy but she shot up too on her feet._

 _"_ _STOP—!" she yelled, ignoring everyone else in the café. "Tell me why!" screamed the pinkette again. Her breathing started to pick up and she felt so confused._

 _Sasuke stopped anyway, and peeked on her over his shoulder. Sakura's heart skipped a beat and for those seconds, she hoped that he would confess to the terrible joke. But he did not. He just walked away. He left._

 _"_ _SASUKE—!". And tears started streaming down her cheeks._

 _Sakura cried her eyes out and the next thing she knew, she was out on the sidewalk with sea of people staring at her. She was sobbing along the way while ignoring the staring eyes. She even forgot how she got there and whether she paid for the drink back at the café, but she did not care anymore._

 _And then, it rain again._

 **/End of flashback**

Knocks on the door awakened Sakura from her sleep.

"Sakura— you're gonna be late!" said Mebuki from outside the room.

"I'm still not feeling well, mom…" Sakura lied; "—I'll take another day off".

Mebuki opened the door. Sakura immediately pulled the blanket over her head and muffled herself as she was sobbing again.

"Then, you have to call your office about that…" said Mebuki as she stood by the door, crossing her arms.

"Yes…" muttered Sakura. It had been two days since she skipped work.

 **XOXOXOX**

It was afternoon and lunch was ready. Mebuki placed a bowl of rice and soup on a serving tray to bring upstairs. Then she stopped and put it on the table instead.

"Sakura— come down here and eat, honey…" Mebuki called out for Sakura from downstairs. She did not want Sakura to lock herself in the room for too long.

Mebuki ate her lunch and she even finished it but still, Sakura had not come down. "The food is getting cold…" she muttered to herself while washing the dishes. Then suddenly, she heard footsteps coming from the stairs. She turned around. It was Sakura.

"Sakura?!" stated Mebuki in almost a yelp. She was shocked to see that Sakura was messy. Her daughter was in the pajamas, tangled hair that was sticking out everywhere on her head, swollen eyes and puffy pale face.

"Are you very ill? Why don't you tell me? We'll see a doctor after this, okay?"

"Ka-san, I'm fine—" Sakura sighed and took her seat at the dining table; "—I just need more rest"

Mebuki shook her head while frowning deeply, eyeing her daughter. Clearly, Sakura was losing her appetite. The pinkette stared blankly at the food in front of her.

"Let me heat the food again for you—"

"It's fine—"

"Okay, but I still want you to go to the doctor. I think it's the rain yesterday—"

"Ka-san—"

"—that you soaked yourself…"

Sakura burst into tears again. And Mebuki stopped. "Sakura… what happened?" she asked.

"We've broke up…"

Mebuki was shocked too but she kept calm and sighed deeply before taking a seat across of the sobbing Sakura.

"It's— talk to me, honey…" said Mebuki.

 **.**

 **XOXOXOX**

 **.**

/Door knocked

Sasuke looked at the door as Rie entered. "Sasuke-sama… Mr. Xin wants to see you…" she spoke softly. Sasuke nodded slightly as he abandoned his work and fixed his composure. Mr. Xin is Sakura's department head, thus making Sasuke wonder right at that moment if this will be related to the pinkette. And he was right, indeed.

"It's about Miss Haruno Sakura…" said the man; "She was absent for two days…"

Hearing this, Sasuke's eyebrows rose slightly and his heart beat increased. "Have you tried to contact her?" he asked while remain calm.

"Yes. And some of the colleagues tried to reach her phone, but she didn't answer and she didn't even reply to the text messages they've sent her…" said Mr. Xin.

"I see… I'll look on this matter—" muttered Sasuke.

Mr. Xin nodded and left the room. After the man left, Sasuke sighed and instantaneously picked up his phone. He browsed through his phone contact and stopped at Sakura's name. He was about to make a call when he suddenly stopped.

For seconds, Sasuke simply held the phone in his hand and wonder if he should call her. He knew the real reason for her absence and calling her to ask about it would be awkward.

"Tch—". Sasuke made the call anyway.

Anxiously, Sasuke listened to the calling tone. No answer. Thus, again, Sasuke tried. And still, Sakura did not pick up the phone. He thought of calling her home but it would be useless if she refused to talk to him. Sasuke sighed and sent a text message to her instead. Seconds after he sent the text message, Rie knocked on the door again and came in.

"Sir, this is the report from yesterday's meeting- and this is last month's sales report…" said Rie, handed the documents to Sasuke.

The Uchiha simply stayed silent and took the documents from her. He flipped through them randomly and waiting for Rie to leave the room as she was supposed to- but she did not.

Sasuke tilted his head to look at his secretary that was still standing in front of his desk. He frowned slightly at her. "Rie, anything else?" he asked.

The dark haired lady gave her boss an indifferent smile. "Pardon me, Sasuke-sama… but you seems troubled lately. Something happened?" she asked.

Instantly, Sakura images popped up in Sasuke's head. He shook slightly and lowered his head to remove the thought of the pinkette. "Nothing. I'm fine…" he muttered.

However, the answer was not satisfying for Rie. She knew that something was up and some rumors had been flying around lately. "I've been your secretary for years, sir. You can't hide from me…" she said.

The young chairman looked at her again. "But still, it has nothing to do with you…" he said coldly.

Rie clenched her jaw. She knew that her boss is always so stubborn. "I heard some rumors… and it's related to Miss Haruno…" said Rie, rolling her eyes.

Sasuke was startled. He knew that people started to pick up on their relationship but it was not so obvious, that they called it a 'rumor'. "Hn—".

 **XOXOXOX**

That evening, Sasuke went home after having dinner somewhere in town. As he reached his house, he saw Itachi's car at the sidewalk. _"What is he doing here?"_ he silently thought. Sasuke parked his car and saw his _aniki_ waiting for him by the door.

"I was waiting for you…" said Itachi, as soon as Sasuke came.

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 **A/N: Finally, the sequel of 'Marry to Money' is here. I'm a bit excited on posting this, so I hope you like it. This sequel will be a little bit relax compared to the first story- I hope so.**

 **Thanks for reading. Reviews are welcome.**


	2. Predicament

**Disclaimer: I dont own Naruto/Shippuden. Except for this awesome plot/storyline XD**

* * *

 **Ch2: Predicament**

 **:::::**

It was raining outside. But the sound was muffled by the closed glass door. Although from the look of it, it was raining quite heavily. Still, the chattering parents were heard almost clearly. Sasuke turned his head to the left- to where his parents and the others were at. Apparently, they were talking about them and all he could decipher were, "They look good together…" "A perfect match—" "Good business deal—".

Then Sasuke turned away, muffling their sound. He looked at the lady that was in front of him. She was silent all the while, looking down on her laps, grasping at the hem of her skirt- since the moment they were 'allowed' to have some alone time together.

"Hinata…" muttered Sasuke. He was trying to get her attention, as well as to create a conversation with her.

With a soft, almost inaudible 'hm', Hinata raised her head and the two young adults were locking their gaze.

"Business deal, they say…" said Sasuke, assuming that Hinata was paying attention to the others' conversations. However, the dark haired lady blinked innocently, sending Sasuke a signal that she was daydreaming.

"The marriage- what do you think about it?" asked Sasuke. He felt awkward about the whole situation but he wanted to know if Hinata has a different view of it.

"I- I just didn't expect that- you agreed to this, Sasuke-kun…" said Hinata. The slight frown on her forehead was proof enough that she was just as confused as Sasuke, much to the guy's disappointment.

"I wasn't informed of this earlier. I'm shocked too…" replied the Uchiha, almost mimicking the worries on Hinata's face.

"You didn't?" the lady spouted, raising her eyebrows. Now, she was looking rather curious than puzzle.

And this had Sasuke confused even more. "You mean- you know about the marriage before this meeting?" he asked. A slight frown embedded itself across his forehead, as he was staring straight into Hinata's eyes, eagerly waiting for an answer.

"Uhm…" Hinata nodded; "Since the day we met at the cruise, remember? My brother made a joke to your father, but apparently… your father took it seriously…" she spoke softly.

Sasuke sighed at the realization. The realization that his father was always a serious man, and that the joke meant something good actually, that he agreed to it. "Now our lives are a joke to them… So, you actually agreed on this?".

"I- I have to… because it's for the sake of the companies. We'll get a lot of benefits from it…". Her voice trailed off.

Sasuke had an urge to shake his head at her comment but instead, he tried to understand her predicament. He had known her since they were in elementary school and Hinata had always been the quiet type, not much of a protester. Sasuke somehow could not remember much about her though, as he did not pay much attention to her. But he had an image of her hiding behind her snobbish older brother, Neji.

"Don't you ever want to go against your brother? As long as I know you, you're always listening to him…"

For awhile, Hinata stared at her immediate fiancé. Her stare was empty, as if she was in deep thought. That made Sasuke wondered about what she actually had in her mind at that time. Then Hinata's jaw slacking to reply something that is nothing like Sasuke expected to hear from her.

"Then why are you agreeing to it yourself?" she asked.

They were once again lost at words and Sasuke could see the future of their marriage- cold, deafening silence. And as he silently imagining the future, a wild memory of a conversation with Sakura, suddenly resurfaced. 

**/Flashback**

 _The launching ceremony was too much crowded for Sasuke that he left the event to be handled by his brother. That led to him meeting Sakura in a predicament, being hooked up by Hidan; a well known playboy._

 _"_ _So, what are you doing here then?" Sakura asked with her arms crossed, as opposed to Sasuke's same question._

 _"_ _Just like you, taking a break from the crowd…" replied Sasuke as he leaned against the railing. Sakura followed him, and they were side by side, looking at the sea._

 _"_ _I'm just—" Sakura suddenly thought of Naruto; that she went out here because the blonde was talking to some other people. "—thinking of something…" she said instead._

 _Sasuke glanced at the pinkette, keeping silent still, and waiting for her to continue. He noticed her expression became somber, as if something was bothering her. But he refused to ask, considering that she was upset because of Naruto._

 _Alas, she spoke._

 _"…_ _what do you think of arranged marriage?" was Sakura's question._

 _Sasuke's heart beat faster and he felt a downright frustration out of nothing. As much as Sasuke thought that the question was rather awkward or out of his comfort zone; he was intrigued as to why Sakura would ask him such question. He grimaced and cleared his throat._

 _"_ _Why are you asking me this? Are you—" Sasuke frowned; "—getting married?"._

 _Sakura's eyes shot open. She quickly turned to Sasuke and gasp. Raising her hands slightly, she waved them in front of her boss; making the guy blinked in confusion. "No, no, no! I'm not getting married!". Her cheeks started to go as pink as her hair._

 _Letting out an inaudible sigh, "Then, what is it?" Sasuke asked._

 _"_ _Just a friend... He's getting married, but it's an arranged marriage…" said Sakura. Then she leaned back on the railing, with Sasuke secretly eyeing her._

 _"_ _I wonder what does it feels like to be with someone that we never love, for the rest of our life?"._

 _Sasuke has no answer for that. He simply stared at Sakura blankly._

 **/End of flashback**

And Sasuke gave Hinata the same stare. _"I wonder about it now too, Sakura…"_ he thought.

"I can't answer that… I have my reasons…" he said, finally answering Hinata's overdue question.

"I understand. Don't we all?" Hinata chuckled. "Even your parents and my brother, they also have their reasons for this. And I accepted it because it's for the sake of everyone's happiness…".

The stoic Uchiha did not flinch at all. He was conflicted inwardly. Hinata pursed her lips, shrugging a little, she let out a soft whine. "But I've never imagined that we met again in such occasion…"

"Yeah, not like this—"

"No, not this—" Hinata cut in quickly. "I mean at the cruise…".

"Oh-" Sasuke squinted a little at her. He took a hint that the lady was having a train of thoughts of her own too.

"You know, I'm glad that nii-san asked me to come. I can meet up with Naruto-kun… ah- and you too" said Hinata. And Sasuke could not ignore the fact that she was blushing. Not because of him, but someone else that might be playing in her mind right now.

"It's been a long time since the graduation… he never changed…" muttered Hinata.

A soft smile glued on Hinata's face, confusing Sasuke a little bit but he was no idiot. _"Maybe Naruto is—"_ he thought.

Hinata took the glass in front of her and took a sip of the drink, while Sasuke still staring at her, having a distracting thought in his mind. He let it out.

"Do you like Naruto?"

Hinata snapped from her thought. She looked at Sasuke over the glass, with eyes widened.

 **.**

 **Present time…**

 **.**

 _/clank_

Itachi glanced at his younger brother, then to the two cans of alcoholic drink on the table. He then glanced at Sasuke again- raising an eyebrow.

"That's all I have. Because I'm an unmarried guy, unlike you…" said Sasuke as he rested his back on the couch. He was in the mood for sarcasm, and so does Itachi.

"But you'll be… soon" said the older Uchiha. He felt like smirking to Sasuke, but he did not. He felt pity at him, somehow. "So, you're not gonna do anything about it?" he then asked.

Sasuke simply nodded, drinking from the can.

"But is this what your heart desire? You don't wanna go against dad, for once?"

"I'm not you, nii-san…"

For some moment, they stayed silent; until Itachi decided to pry much more. "What about your girlfriend then?" he asked.

Sasuke glared at his brother for mere seconds before he tore away. He was surprised that Itachi would ask such thing, considering that he had not told anyone, except Naruto. An image of a certain pinkette ran through his mind that he cursed Itachi inwardly for it.

"You've never changed, Sasuke… still a player. I think you're never serious with Sakura- or any girls at all …" Itachi stated bluntly, snapping through Sasuke's thin patience.

Sasuke's eyebrows twitched at the statement, he turned to Itachi again, feeling rage building up inside of him. He felt the urge to shot up from the couch and scream at Itachi's face- telling him that he is serious about Sakura. But all he did was clutching the can- so hard that it bent.

 **XOXOXOX**

It was another day and Sasuke was preparing himself for the monthly meeting, the meeting that he dislikes the most because of its long hour and tons of presentations. He quietly managed his files when the door was knocked and then opened. Rie's pretty face appeared by the door.

"Sasuke-sama… Miss Haruno wants to see you…" she said.

Like an arrow, the mention of 'Miss Haruno' made Sasuke's heart leapt. And unfortunately, cold sweat too. But as usual, he played it cool and it pulled through. He walked back to his desk.

"Let her come in. 10 minutes…" said the young chairman.

Rie nodded in response and invited Sakura to come in. The pinkette entered. She gulped secretly as she walked over to Sasuke's desk while being eyed by the guy. Then she stopped somewhere in a distance that was clear enough for Sasuke to see her and for her to hear him. All the while, Sasuke was observing her. He clearly saw how pale she is. And her eyes were baggy, maybe from too much crying. And the fact that she only put a dull pinkish lip tint on her lips. Sasuke gnawed his feelings inside.

"I was sick…" was all she spouted, before she took a few more steps forward and placed a small white envelope on Sasuke's desk.

Sasuke had to tear his gaze of the pinkette and look at the envelope. "What's this?" he asked.

"It's my letter of absence and the doctor's reference. I'm sorry about the late notice…" muttered the pinkette.

Sasuke took the letter and put it aside. He sighed and his jaw was slacking a little as he stared at the lady in front of him. There were too many thoughts in his mind, and too many things he wanted to tell Sakura- to explain. He wanted to comfort her.

"So how are you?" was all he managed to utter.

The pinkette displayed a forced smile on her face. "I'm fine, thank you. I'm going now…" said Sakura then she turned away to leave the place. A slight frown quickly replaced her smile.

"Sakura, wait—"

Sakura's feet instantly died on its track and she glanced at Sasuke over her shoulder.

"I'm sorry…"

But Sakura did not flinch. She left the room.

 **.**

 **.**

The meeting ended and Sasuke went straight to his office. He could felt his head pounding slightly from all the tensions and the fact that he could not stop thinking of Sakura the whole time. Thus the files were smacked hard in a loud thud on the desk and his left fist hit the wooden surface too.

"..."

Frowning and breathing hard, Sasuke had a resolve. He reached for his phone in his pocket and was about to dial Sakura when an incoming call ringing.

/Neji calling…/

Sasuke's eyebrows rose slightly as he answered the call.

* * *

 **A/N: Here's the update. I didn't realized that I took so long for this second chapter because in fact, I hv all the plot written down. Well, anyway, I hope you all like it. Thanks for reading, have a nice day!**

 **REVIEW. FAVOURITE. FOLLOW.**


	3. Torn

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything except the STORYLINE!**

* * *

 **Ch3: Torn**

 **:::::**

The cafeteria was full of hungry employees and that worries Sasuke a little bit although it hardly shows on his face. He could not even remember when the last time he went to the office cafeteria. And now he was there, among his employees and also his brother in-law to be. The café was not so full of people though, but the tension was still felt by the young chairman. As they sat somewhere at the café, he could felt as if every eyes were staring at them- him especially.

At that time, Sasuke thought that he might have developed a sixth sense and even grew another pair of eyes behind his head. He had a clear image in his head that they were talking about him and staring at him.

 _'There he is…' 'Is that him? The Hyuuga?'_

 _'So the rumor is true…' 'I can't believe it…'_

 _"I can't believe it either…"_ was all Sasuke could think about. He wondered how the news spread so fast around the building but at least he was glad that the marriage news will save Sakura from the rumor of their last relationship.

Then a clank snapped Sasuke from his wondering thought, he returned his focus to the man in front of him. The man smiled, wiping his mouth with a paper towel.

"That was kinda good for a cafeteria…" Neji commented. "You should have one too… instead of that ordinary _sashimi_ "

 _"Always being so outspoken…"_ Sasuke thought before he nodded in response.

"So, how's work?" asked Neji with a steady smile glued on his face. The smile was not a friendly type but the one that served as tension reliever since Sasuke was not so generous with such thing. And the fact that Neji tried to ease the tight atmosphere among them, as he realized that Sasuke was not so comfortable.

"I'm fine. It wasn't so long since we met at my parents' house though…" said Sasuke in his usual monotone voice.

Neji snorted at him. "Yeah, you're actually right… but pardon me if you're actually busy. Are you? I mean, do you have any meetings or something after this?"

"No" Sasuke replied quickly, shaking his head slightly. "Anyway, what brings you here, Hyuuga-san?"

Amusement quickly found its way on Neji's face and his eyebrows rose slightly. "Do I have to have something to discuss then only I'm allowed to come here?" the Hyuuga then chuckled.

Sasuke was troubled as Neji's sense of humor felt like a heavy stone being dropped on top of him. It was not funny but it was not bad either. Except for heavy sarcasm that he sensed in it- it hit the young Uchiha's nerve.

"What I mean is-" and Sasuke was cut off with Neji raising his hand slightly.

"It's fine. I'm here to meet you and just get to know you better… besides, we're going to be a family"

Sasuke's spine straightened and his back hit the chair. He had this shock expression on his face as the word 'family' burned in his stomach and he had goosebumps. Instantly he thought of a certain pinkette although he knew that Neji was actually talking about a different 'family'.

Quickly, Sasuke tried to distract himself by clearing his throat. "I know…" he muttered.

Neji smirked at the young Uchiha's discomfort and his next question did not help the situation to get any better. "So, how about your jade eyes girlfriend?" he asked, eyeing Sasuke closely.

Sighing, Sasuke sipped his drink as he tore away from Neji. He had expected the question anyway. "We're not a couple…". _'Not anymore…'_

"I see… and I saw her at the cruise too. But there's nothing more that I want other than Hinata's happiness, and of course… yours too, Sasuke." said Neji while Sasuke remained silent. "And for both companies to flourish, this marriage will be a dream come true. It will tie everything together- the families and the business…"

Sasuke nodded weakly. 

**XOXOXOX**

The day went on and Sakura was preparing a report of the previous meeting. She did not even realize that she was eyed by someone all the while. She kept doing her work and the large printing machine was making a loud noise, engaging her in her deep thought.

"Done…" the pinkette murmured to herself. She took the document from the tray and turned around to return to her desk but she was jolted in shock. She gasped and sighed loudly.

"Tenten-san! You scared me!"

Tenten shook her head. "I'm sorry… but you seem focus so I didn't make a sound. Well, I just wanna talk to you for a bit…". The brown haired lady leaned closer. "Have you heard about the marriage?"

Sakura frowned slightly and shook her head.

"Hm… it's our chairman. He's getting engage to the Hyuuga…" said Tenten with her arms folded across her chest.

The news slapped Sakura hard on her face that her cheeks instantly felt warm. She was terribly shocked and she tried to play it cool. "I- I've heard of that…" she muttered as her voice slowly became somber.

Sakura's breathe became ragged and her chest moved rapidly ups and downs. The world suddenly became empty and silent except for her heartbeat despite Tenten being so excited telling her the news. She now knew why Sasuke suddenly broke them up but she wanted to know more.

"Y-You mean- Hyuuga Hinata?" Sakura then asked. Her memories instantly went back to the cruise and the time she met the dark haired lady. Her soft gaze and smile planted in Sakura's head.

"Mhmm… then I guess the rumors of you two being together are untrue then? That's too bad…". Tenten sighed a little.

"Well, that's a bad rumor… I'll go back to my place". Sakura then left Tenten. She felt a glimpse of sadness in her heart.

 **XOXOXOX**

It was only two hours away from finishing work and Sakura could not wait to go home. Finishing the reports were her top priority and it helped to take her mind off of her problems. After submitting the reports, Sakura met Mr. Xin.

"Yes, Sakura?" asked the bespectacled guy.

" _Senpai_ , I've done my work for today. And I request to go back early today, if possible," the pinkette peered at the guy with her eyebrows furrowed. "…I don't feel really well". Sakura's mind went back to the time when she always 'accidentally' being in the same elevator with Sasuke. Going home earlier might help her to skip that opportunity, although she knew that she could not avoid him forever; but she still want to take the slightest chance possible.

The guy at the desk groaned softly as he nodded- _almost_ unwillingly. "Okay, you can go. I'll talk to the administration team about this, don't worry. Just have a good rest…" he said however.

"Thank you…". Sakura bowed slightly before she left the room. Without wasting any time, Sakura went back to her desk. After telling Tenten about it, Sakura headed to the elevator. Standing idly in the moving box alone, made her mind wandered off. She was still grieving at the failure of her relationship. A soft sigh left her pinkish lips as she regretted herself that she have not gotten over the break up yet.

Suddenly the elevator dinged. Sakura took a step back and tilted her head a little- the elevator stopped at 10th floor. Steadily, the door opened and a familiar face greeted Sakura. Almost instantly, the pinkette's heart skipped a beat and she immediately regretted the idea of going home early.

"Sakura?"

 _"…He's getting engage to the Hyuuga…"._ Tenten's voice immediately replayed in Sakura's head.

"Neji-san… it's—"

"A surprise. I know…" Neji appended. "Glad to see you here, Sakura… but it's still working hours now…". The Hyuuga looked at his watch.

Sakura forced a smile. She could not stop it, but her eyebrows furrowed slightly in mixed of feelings she had in her chest right at that moment. They stood side by side, and Sakura tried to act normal. "I'm not feeling very well, so I asked for permission to go home early…"

"I see. You need to get some rest then. Anyway, which level are you working at?" Neji asked casually.

"Eleventh, the Editorial department…" the pinkette replied without hesitation. She glanced at the Hyuuga heir, then to the number on the screen quickly. Every floor they went through felt like eternity. Sakura even wished for the elevator to stop and have someone else with them there, to ease the tension.

"Good, the heart of the building. I mean- editorial department is one of the most important" said Neji as he gave Sakura a friendly smile. "I'll see you around more after this though… we'll work together. The merging will bring a lot of benefits to both companies- considering that you've heard of the marriage?" said the guy, almost in a whisper.

The pink haired lady simply stared at him with an empty expression, "I- I've heard about it…" she muttered. Her heart beats crazily.

Snorting softly, Neji smiled. "I remembered meeting you for the first time at the restaurant. And you two almost got me into believing that you're dating…". He then chuckled. "I guess he just love to play around…"

Sakura's jaw slacked a little for seconds but she then pursed it while humming a soft 'hm' before turning away and stared at the metallic door. She could not accept the fact that Sasuke was playing with her all this while. _"…or did he?"_ she silently thought. She chewed the bitter thought away while trying as hard as she can to stay calm. Despite the fact that her cheeks felt warm and her visions became blurry.

Finally, they reached the lobby. Sakura stepped out of the elevator in a hurry and bowed to Neji as the door closed, since the guy went to the basement parking lot.

"Please… not now" muttered Sakura as soon as she turned away from the elevator and onto the spacious lobby that was filled with people. She walked slowly with her head down, towards the glass door that will be her last obstacle, since she could not contain her tears anymore.

So much for Sakura to maintain her composure, her lips quivered and soft sobs uncontrollably left her lips. People started to notice her and her predicament; they slowed down and fixed their eyes on her. The situation reminded Sakura of her first day stepping her foot to the building, where she ran away in tears- wanting to get a job there. But now, it was totally different- she wanted to run away again; this time wanting to forever leave the place.

And she did. Sakura walked as fast as her feet could bring her with her hard sob and blurry vision towards the rotating glass door. Although this time she did not bump onto anyone on her way out, but the embarrassment level was still the same because of the fact that at least half of the people in the lobby knew her.

 **XOXOXOX**

The cold air outside greeted Sakura harshly, that the pinkette held onto her outer jacket and clutched her handbag closer to her body. While her tears were still flowing and her nose was getting stuffier, she quickly ran down the plight of stairs to get away from the building. All she wanted now was some time alone and away from Sasuke.

As Sakura managed to calm down, she went to the nearest taxi stand. However, she knew that going home early would not solve her problem; she decided to go somewhere else. And the nearest park was her only choice. But the park was filled with people and couples were everywhere. Sakura's lips quivered as she walked along the park, looking for an empty seat.

It became colder and windy. Sakura folded her arms tightly across the chest and luckily because of the weather, people started to leave. She sat on the stone bench, alone and cold. Suddenly, warmness fell from her eyes; she sobbed terribly into her palms, ignoring the people nearby. 

**::/::**

Meanwhile, in the spacious office room, the tapping sound from the desktop keyboard was clearly heard. Sasuke was busy doing his work when he received a call from the administration team manager. He sighed after placing the phone down. Then he reached for his phone almost absentmindedly, and looked through the contact list.

Sasuke was browsing on his contact list for a while before stopping at Sakura's name. He had an urge to call her and ask her if she is okay and so on. _"Or maybe I should text her…"_ he thought.

Then suddenly a loud thunder was heard. Slowly, Sasuke turned towards the glass panel behind the desk; the sky was obviously dark. He frowned. 

**XOXOXOX**

The loud thunder gave Sakura a realization that it will rain soon. The air was indeed chilly and it was windy, forcing people to either walk faster or find a shelter. Glancing around her, Sakura decided to stay and put her hands in her jacket for warmth. She knew that some passerby was looking at her funny but internally, she did not care anymore.

 _"I just wanna be alone…"_ her inner Sakura said.

And another thunder roared just seconds before the heavy rain. People started to run away from the park to find shelter while Sakura was still there. She was crying her eyes out in the pouring rain, ignoring the world around her. Then the park was finally empty only in a matter of minute and Sakura sobbed loudly as she was finally alone.

Or so she thought.

"Are you crazy?!"

Sakura gasped and she turned her head towards the voice- a familiar voice. And her eyes went wide. She could no longer know whether it was the rain water or her tears as she was soaked from head to toe. Unconsciously, her knees brought her up to her feet while she was staring blankly at the person in front of her. Her chest was filled with joy, anger and relieve while her body felt like an empty case. She felt that she could fell down at any second.

"You'll get sick, you idiot…".

"S-Sasuke-kun?", Sakura managed to utter before her numb body was pulled by Sasuke towards his. He wrapped his arms around Sakura and whispered into her ear, "Don't make me worry…".

The rain was heavy, yet Sakura could hear Sasuke's calm voice clearly. And the sense of relieve seeped through her body, warming her, despite the dropping temperature. Slowly, she returned the hug and sobbed into Sasuke's chest.

 _'Don't leave me'_

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **First of all, I apologize for the extremely late update. Life happened. But I've never once forget about all these fanfics. Hope you like it and have a very good day/night.**


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